Book Review: We All Looked Up by Tommy Wallach

We All Looked Up
by Tommy Wallach
Series: Standalone
Publication: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers on March 24, 2015
Format: Hardcover, 384 pages
Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Contemporary, Dystopia, Coming of Age

Before Ardor came, we let ourselves be defined by labels - 
the ATHLETE,
the SLUT,
the SLACKER,
the OVERACHIEVER.
But then we all looked up, and everything changed. They said the asteroid would be here in two months. That gave us two months to leave our labels behind. Two months to become something bigger than what we'd been, something that would last even after the end. Two months to really LIVE.

Red Queen (Red Queen #1) - Victoria Aveyard

Red Queen

by Victoria Aveyard

Series: Red Queen (#1)

Publication: HarperCollins on February 10, 2015

Format: Hardcover, 400 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dystopia, Romance

Jacket copy:

Mare Barrow's world is divided by blood - those with red and those with silver.  Mare and her family are lowly Reds, destined to serve the Silver elite whose supernatural abilities make them nearly gods.  Mare steals what she can to help her family survive, but when her best friend is conscripted into the army she gambles everything to win his freedom.  A twist of fate leads her to the royal palace itself, where, in front of the king and all his nobles, she discovers a power of her own - an ability she didn't know she had.  Except . . . her blood is red.

To hide this impossibility, the king forces her into the role of a lost Silver princess and betroths her to one of his own sons.

As Mare is drawn further into the Silver world, she risks her new position to aid the Scarlet Guard - the leaders of a Red rebellion.  Her actions put into motion a deadly and violent dance, pitting prince against prince - and Mare against her own heart.

After hearing so much praise for Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard, I finally hunted down this author's debut novel at the public library.  Needless to say, after checking out the book, I stuck my nose in the spine and immediately got cracking to reading on the drive home.

Okay.  Before I get on to the real review, I just have to say this cover is gorgeous!  So very simple but I love it.  A million thumbs up from me. ☺

The main issue I had with Red Queen was that . . . it didn't feel original.  Sure, I've never read a book about "Reds" and "Silvers," but I felt like a whole lot of the plot overlapped with other popular YA Dystopia novels.  I suppose that it's quite difficult to make up completely original content, so I do understand.  However, at the beginning I felt as if I was reading a retelling of The Hunger Games, and during the middle and towards the end of the book, I felt as if I was reading a mix of The Selection by Kiera Cass and Divergent.  If any of you are devout fans of those series, then perhaps you will enjoy this book more due to the similar plots.  However, I thought of these similarities more as flaws - marks from the creativity factor.  And since the books were so similar, I couldn't help scrutinize the text and compare the plots that more closely.  I mean, as I said, it felt like I read it all before.

Some parts of the plot were cliché.  The big plot twists didn't come as a surprise to me (rather unfortunately.)  

However, the writing was exciting, especially towards the ending.  Overall I still enjoyed the book quite a lot.  The ideas and portions of the book that were completely original, I loved.  Many books talk about bloodlines and half-bloods, but I particularly enjoyed Victoria Aveyard's take with "Reds and "Silvers."  Oh yeah, and the Silvers' abilities were pretty (if you don't mind me saying) kick-butt.  The book was extremely action-packed and kept me intrigued.  I felt that Victoria Aveyard more than made up for the areas of her plot that were lacking.

Unfortunately, I have to admit I was expecting a bit more of Red Queen simply because I've heard so many good things about the book.  But all in all, I was thoroughly entertained and enjoyed the read.  So if you're looking for another YA action-packed novel with similar themes to books like The Hunger Games, The Selection, and Divergent, I'd say go for this one.  If you're a stickler for creativity, you might want to stay away.   

I'll be on the lookout for the sequel!

The Program (The Program #1) - Suzanne Young

The Program

by Suzanne Young

Series: The Program (#1)

Publication: Simon Pulse on April 30, 2013

Format: Paperback, 405 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Mental Illness, Dystopia, Romance

Jacket copy:

Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone.  

With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment.  Sloane's parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they'll do anything to keep her alive.  She also knows that everyone who's been through The Program returns as a blank slate.  Because their depression is gone - but so are their memories.

Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can.  The only person Sloane can be herself with is James.  He's promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything.  But despite the promises they made to each other, it's getting harder to hide the truth.  They are both growing weaker.  

Depression is settling in. 

When I took a visit to Barnes and Noble the other day, The Program Series by Suzanne Young was being heavily advertised on shelves.  As I now know, her second book in the series, The Treatment, had just been released in paperback the previous month.  I, however, did not read the first book, The Program, and so, wanting to judge the book for myself, bought a copy to take home.

By now, I'm sure the majority of you YA book lovers have already read this book.  For those like me who haven't, hopefully my book review will be able to help you decide for yourself whether or not you want to add The Program to your shelf.

I think what makes prospective readers a bit hesitant to pick up The Program is due to the fact that the storyline circles around depression.  I for one, didn't necessarily want to immerse myself in a depressed dystopian society for a couple of hours.

Be prepared: this book is no "buttercream roses and pink frosting," so do take heed from the jacket copy.  The world Sloane lives in is sickeningly flawed and absolutely terrifying.  Though the text may be quite disturbing at times, the storyline always keeps readers captivated and absorbed.  And if you're one of those hesitant to pick up your own copy, I say just go for it.  You'll be continually engrossed.

Something about the plot that was a bit different from the norm in YA novels was the romance factor.  Unlike the majority of YA novels in which a vital part of the storyline is about meeting someone and falling in love, from page one in The Program, Sloane is already wholly in love with James.  This only makes the book all the more despairing when both Sloane and James are thrown into The Program themselves, and for this reason, I felt it worked well for the storyline.

The reader goes on a frightening emotional roller coaster with Sloane as she tries in all her capability to fight against "the cure."  As the story goes on, the reader is slowly exposed to memory after memory of Sloane's, and though James is not present during Sloane's "treatment," the reader fully falls in love with him through her memory.  What's quite ironic about this, is that while the reader is gaining Sloane's memories, she is gradually losing them one by one.

All in all?  Read The Program.  The plot is riveting, the characters and their relationships are spun together skillfully, and though the story revolves around depression, the "darkness" only helps to emphasize the "light" and to spark hope in the reader.  

Now having read The Program, I have still to determine whether I want to pursue the next installment in the series, The Treatment.  As much as I enjoyed this first book, I have my reservations about continuing on to book two.